abbreviations, signs, and symbols

ABBREVIATIONS, SIGNS, AND SYMBOLS

A BBREVIATIONS SAVE SPACE and prevent fused with the preposition "in." A better procedure is the distraction of needlessly repeated words or to just spell out the word "inch(es)."

phrases. The space saved is usually so small, however, that the use of abbreviations is determined largely by

- - - custom, convenience to the reader, and the appear- NAMES OF cou NTR~ ES AND ance of the printed page.

Ingenera1,fewabbreviationsshouldbeusedinthe OTHER POL~T~CALSUBD~V~S~ONS text of a Survey report, although many may be used in tables and footnotes. The text should be under- standable by nonspecialists, and abbreviations should be used without definition only if they are widely understood (for example, such common bibliographic abbreviations as "fig.," "pl.," "p.," and "no.," and other nonbibliographic abbreviations such as "a.m.," 6 6 p.m.," "A.D.," and "B.C.").

Uncommon abbreviations must be defined the first time they are used in the main text. The standard Survey format is to enclose the abbreviated form in parentheses immediately following the spelled out form-for example, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Follow the same procedure in the abstract if a term is used several times there, and because the abstract must be able to stand alone, repeat the procedure in the main text the first time the abbreviation is used there.

Common sense can help decide when abbreviations are appropriate. Terms used only a few times should not be abbreviated, and abbreviations that might inconvenience the reader should not be used. In general, abbreviations are suitable for often-repeated names of organizations, conferences, congresses, and programs-for example, IGCP, for International Geo- logical Correlation Programme; AGI, for American Geological Institute; also, for widely used instruments or processes-for example, SEM for scanning-electron microscope. Abbreviations are inappropriate for geographic names or geologic terms in Survey reports, no matter how many times such names or terms are used in a paper. Do not, for example, use AB for Appalachian Basin, SAF for San Andreas Fault, or MVTD for Mississippi Valley-type deposits.

Abbreviations are used freely in tables, partly because of tight space limitations. Abbreviations used in tables are defined in bracketed headnotes.

In general, abbreviations for scientific terms and for terms of measurement are not followed by periods; however, a period should be used with the abbreviation for "inch(es)" if the abbreviation might be con-

"U.S." is used when "United States" precedes the word "Government" or the name of a Government organization: U.S. Government, U.S. Congress, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. No spaces are left between the letters and periods of "U.S.," but a space precedes the name that follows. In titles, "United States" should be written out whether it is a noun or an adjective. In the text, "United States" should be written out when used as a noun and abbreviated when used as an adjective-for example, "mineral deposits of the United States," but "U.S. mineral deposits."

Names of foreign countries, except that of the U.S.S.R. (or SSSR), are not abbreviated, nor are the names of their political subdivisions. "United States" is written out when used in association with the names of other countries, except the U.S.S.R.; thus, British, French, and United States Governments; United States-British talks; but U.S.-U.S.S.R. meeting.

STATES AND POSSESSIONS OF THE UNITED STATES

Names of States of the United States (except Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Ohio, and Utah), also the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, are abbreviated when they immediately follow a capitalized geographic term; they are spelled out after a lowercased word: Chicago, Ill.; Montgomery County, Md.; Stone Mountain, Ga.; Arlington National Cemetery, Va.; Redstone Arsenal, Ala.; but St. Lawrence County magnetite district, New York; Tacoma area, Washington. The names of other insular possessions, trust territories, and such places as Long Island and Staten Island are not abbreviated. Customary abbreviations are used for States in reports; Postal Service abbreviations are used only in "ZIP code" mailing addresses.

104 Abbreviations, signs, and symbols

Alabama --------------- Alaska ------------------- Arizona ----------------- Arkmsas --------------- California -------------- Colorado --------------- Connecticut----------- Delaware --------------- Florida ------------------ Georgia ----------------- Hawaii ------------------ Idaho .................... Illinois ------------------- Indiana ----------------- Iowa ..................... Kansas ------------------ Kentucky -------------- Louisiana -------------- Maine ....................

Postal Postal Postal customary Service customary Service

Ala. AL Alaska AK Ariz. AZ Ark. AR Calif. C A

States (4nd abbre- abbre- possessums viaticms

--- Colo. co Conn. CT Del. DE Fla. FL

States and customary Service

a b h -

Ga. GA Hawaii HI Idaho ID 111. IL Ind. IN Iowa I A Kans. KS Kv. KY

abbre- 1 States and

~ a . LA Maine ME

viations

Maryland -------------- Massachusetts ------- Michigan --------------- Minnesota ------------- Mississippi ------------- M i s s ~ ~ ---------------- Montana ---------------- Nebraska -------------- Nevada ----------------- New Hampshire ---- New Jersey ----------- New Mexico ---------- New York ------------- North Carolina------ North Dakota-------- Ohio ------- - - - - - - --- - - - -- - Oklahoma -------------- Oregon ------------------ Pennsylvania---------

possessums abbre- abbre-

viations viations possessums viations viations

ACCENTS AND DIACRITICAL MARKS

Md. MD Mass. MA Mich. MI Minn. MN Miss. MS Mo. MO - - - Mont. MT Nebr. NE Nev. NV N.H. NH N.J. NJ N. Mex. NM N.Y. NY N.C. NC N. Dak. ND Ohio OH Okla. OK - -- Oreg. OR Pa. PA

Rhode Island--------- R.I. RI South Carolina------ S.C. SC South Dakota-------- S. Dak. Tennessee ------------- Tenn.

SD

Texas .................... Tex. TN

Utah ..................... Utah TX Vermont --------------- Vt.

UT Virginia ---------------- Va.

VT VA

Washington----------- Wash. WA West V~rginia ------- W. Va. Wisconsin ------------- Wis.

WV

Wyoming -------------- Wyo. WI WY

District of Columbia------------ D.C.

Guam .................... Guam DC GU

Puerto Rico----------- P.R. PR Virgin Islands ------- V.I. VI

Terminology." Names and symbols are given in table 2.

In Survey publications accents and diacritical marks are used chiefly in the spelling of foreign words. Take DATES care to use them correctly:

' acute Orleans) 6 Names of months followed by the day, or by the

" bolle ( lesund) day and year, are usually abbreviated in tables, local-

. cedilla (franpis) ity lists, and in parentheses. May, June, and July are

- circumflex (c6te) always spelled out. Preferred forms for other months

" dieresis or umlaut (Niirnberg) are as follows: grave (AsmGres) Jan. AD^. Oct.

" hacek (Pfibyl) . inverted cedilla (Dqbrowa) - macron (Kyiishu)

/ slash (R$mros) ' soft sign (Arkhangel'sk)

superior dot (sharkysko Kamienna) - tilde (caiion)

ADDRESSES The words "street," "avenue," "building," and

similar address terms following a name or number are abbreviated in footnotes, tables, leaderwork, and lists, but as parts of names, they are spelled out, even in parentheses, footnotes, tables, and leaderwork: "2912 14th St.," but "14th Street Bridge." The

Feb. Aug. Nov.

Mar. Sept. Dec.

In narrow columns of tables, the names of months may be abbreviated even if they stand alone. Other- wise, the form used in Survey reports is "January 1, 1985."

Article 13 of the North American Stratigraphic Code (North American Commission on Stratigraphic Nomenclature, 1983), quoted in part below, should be followed for the preferred abbreviations used in geochronologic dating. -

words ‘‘couII~~," "fort," "mount," "point," and The "present" refers to 1950 AD [sic], and such qualifiers as "port" are not abbreviated. "Saint (St.)" and "ago" or "before the present" are omitted after the value because

"Sainte (Ste.)" should be abbreviated. measurement of the duration from the present to the past is im- plicit in the designation. In contrast, the duration of a remote interval of geologic time, as a number of years, should not be ex-

CHEMICAL ELEMENTS, NAMES, pressed by the same symbols. Abbreviations for numbers of years, without reference to the present, are informal (e.g., y or yr for

AND SYMBOLS years; my, m.y., or m.yr. for millions of years; and so forth, as preference dictates). For example, boundaries of the Late Creta-

Chemical names, rather than symbols, should ceous Epoch currently are calibrated a t 63 Ma and 96 Ma, but the generally be used in text, as discussed in "Chemical interval of time represented by this epoch is 33 m.y.

Abbreviations, signs, and symbols 105

Table 2. Chemical symbols he names and symbols listed below are approved by the International Ur

Kernistry. From the U.S. GPO style Manual, 1984, p. 16.11

............. Neon.. ....

Protactinium ..... Radium ............... Radon .................. Rhodium ............. Rubidium ........... Ruthenium ......... Samarium .......... Scendium ............ Selenium ............

................. Silicon

Strontium ........... .................. Sulfur

Thulium .............. Titanium ............

.......... Vanadium ................ Xenon.. ......... Ytterbium

..................... Zinc .......... Mercury ................ Zirconium

and Applied

bwl weight

'The atomic weights of many elements are not invariant but depend on the origin and treatment of the material. The values of atomic weight given here apply to elements as they exist naturally on Earth and to certain artificial elements. Values in parentheses are used for radioactive elements whose atomic weights cannot be quoted precisely without knowledge of the origin of the elements. The value given is the atomic mass number of the isotope of that element of longest known half life.


For dating use the following:

ka for kilo-annum (lo3 years) Ma for mega-annum (lo6 years) Ga for giga-annum (lo9 years)

Note that ka and kilo are not capitalized (by international convention).

In describing land divisions subdivided by section, township, and range, use the following forms (omit periods after abbreviated compass directions that immediately precede and close up on figures):

SE1/4NW1/4 see. 4, T. 12 S., R. 15 E., of the Boise Meridian

lot 6, NE1/4 sec. 4, T. 6 N., R. 1 W. N11z sec. 20, T. 7 N., R. 2 W., Sixth Principal

Meridian Tps. 9, 10, 11, and 12 S., Rs. 12 and 13 W. T. 2 S., Rs. 8, 9, and 10 E., sec. 26 T. 3 S., R. 1 E., sec. 34, W1/zE1/z, W1/z, and

W1/zSE1/4SE1/r sec: 32 (with or without a township number)

If fractions are spelled out in land descriptions, "half" and "quarter" are used (not "one-half" or "one-quarter"): "south half of T. 47 N., R. 64 E." Avoid breaking a group such as NE1/4SE1/r sec. 4 at the end of a line. If a break is unavoidable, make it after the fraction and use no hyphen.

LAT~TUDE AND LONGITUDE The words "latitude" and "longitude" followed

by figures are abbreviated (no periods after "lat" and "long"), and the figures are closed up: lat 52"33'05"N., long 13"21'10,"E. Avoid breaking latitude and longitude figures at the end of a line. If a break is unavoidable, use a hyphen.

Terms denoting units of measurement should be abbreviated only when preceded by an amount indicated in numerals. Thus, write "3 m high," "6 cm thick," but "several meters long," "a few kilometers north."

Over a stratigraphic figure column, use "Meters," "(m)," "Feet," "(feet)," "Ft In," or "(ft in)," depending on the content of the column, whether the term stands by itself or follows another term such as

"Thickness," and depending on the amount of space available.

Mineral names are not ordinarily abbreviated in narrative text, but abbreviations may be appropriate on certain maps, in tables, or as symbols, subscripts, or superscripts. Symbols for common minerals are given in table 3.

NAMES AND TITLES In the names of business firms, the abbreviated

forms "Bros.," "Co.," "Corp.," "Inc.," "Ltd.," and "&" should be used if the full legal title need not be preserved. "Company" and "Corporation" are not abbreviated in names of Federal Government units. "Association" and "Manufacturing" are not abbreviated.

Names of railroads should not be abbreviated except in parentheses, footnotes, tables, and leaderwork. Use the correct form "Railroad" or "Railway" ("RR." and "Ry."), depending on the usage of the individual company.

In other than formal usage, a civil, military, or naval title preceding a name is abbreviated if followed by a given name or initials: "Col. H.M. Smith furnished data on the wells"; but "Colonel Smith furnished

. The titles "Senator" and "Representative" are not abbreviated.

The abbreviation "no." (lowercase "n") is used for serial numbers and in citing "v." and "no." of a publication: "Journal of Paleontology, v. 10, no. 3." In identifying specimens, wells, drill holes, and the like, however, "number" or "No." is generally superfluous and can be omitted: "specimen 4297," "Government well 6W," "Drill hole 5" but "Of all the specimens examined, No. 4297 most clearly illustrated * * *,, . Do not use the symbol #. Uppercase "N" is used in formal names and in numbered coal beds.

The word "percent" should be spelled out in text. In tables, the abbreviation "pct" or the symbol "%" may be used if other terms of measurement are also abbreviated. The symbol "%", however, is not as easily read in small type. "Percent" should be used with numerals: "20 percent." It is preferred to "percentage" for table headings. "Percentage"

Abbreviations, signs, and symbols 107

Table 3. Mineral symbols [Kretz, 1983; courtesy of the Mineralogical Society of America]

Acm --------------- acmite Elb ---------------- elbaite Act ---------------- actinolite En ---------------- enstatite (ortho)

2: --------------- aegirine-augite Ep ---------------- epidote --------------- Xkermanite Fst ---------------- fassaite

Ab ----------------albite Fa ----------------- fayalite Aln ---------------- allanite Fac ---------------- ferroactinolite Alm ---------------almandine Fed ---------------- ferroedenite An1 ---------------- analcime Fs ----------------- ferrosilite (ortho) Ant ---------------- anatase Fts ---------------- ferrotschermakite And --------------- andalusite F1 -----------------fluorite Adr ---------------- andradite Fo ----------------- forsterite Anh --------------- anhydrite Gn ----------------galena Ank --------------- ankerite Grt ----------------garnet Ann --------------- annite Ged ------------ --- An ---------------- anorthite

gedrite Gh ---------------- gehlenite

Atg ---------------- antigorite Gbs --------------- gibbsite

Ath ---------------- anthophyllite Ap ----------------apatite Apo --------------- apophyllite AIJ I--------------- aragonite

--------------- arfvedsonite Apy --------------- arsenopyrite Aug --------------- augite . . Ax ----------------axllllte Brt ----------------barite Brl ----------------beryl Bt -----------------biotite Bhm ---------------boehmite Bn ---------------- bornite Brk ---------------- brookite Brc ---------------- brucite Bst ---------------- bustamite

Cam --------------- Ca clinoamphibole Cpx --------------- Ca clinopyroxene Cal ----------------calcite Ccn ---------------- cancrinite Cm ---------------- camegieite Cst ----------------cassiterite Cls ---------------- celestite Cbz ---------------- chabazite Cc ----------------- chalcocite Cc ----------------chalcopyrite CJ - ---------------chlorite Cld ---------------- chloritoid Chn --------------- chondrodite Chr ---------------- chromite Ccl ---------------- chrysocolla Ctl ---------------- chrysotile

Cen ---------------- clinoenstatite Cfs ---------------- clinoferrosilite Chu ---------------clinohumite Czo ---------------- clinozoisite Crd ---------------- cordierite Cm ----------------corundum Cv-----------------covellite Crs ---------------- cristobalite Cum --------------- cpmmgtonite Dsp --------------- &aspore Dk ---------------- digen'te Dl ----------------- diopside Do1 ----------------dolomite DN ---------------- dravite Eck ---------------- ecke-te Ed ---------------- edemte

,It ---------------- glauconite ,In ---------------- glaucophane ,t ----------------- goethlte .r -----------------graphite rs ---------------- grossular ,N ---------------- grunerite

-------------- sum if-:: -------------- E t e Is ---------------- hastingsite ,yn --------------- haiiyne :d ---------------- hedenbergite :em ---------------hematite :c ---------------- hercynite :ul---------------- heulandite :bl ----------------hornblende :u ---------------- humite

. . Ill ----------------- llllte Ilm ---------------- ilmenite Jd ----------------- jadeite Jh -- ---- ------ -- - -- Krs ---------------- ghm'"" ersut~te Kls ---------------- kalsilite Kln ---------------- kaolinite Ktp ---------------- kata horite P Kfs ---------------- K fe dspar Krn ---------------- komerupine Ky ---------------- kyanite Lmt --------------- laumontite Lws --------------- lawsonite Lpd --------------- lepidolite Lct ---------------- leucite Lm ----------------limonite

Lz ----------------- lizardite Lo ----------------- loehgite M h -------------- maghemite

t --------------- magnesiokatophorite Mf - Mrb --------------- magnesioriebeckite Mgs --------------- magnes~te Mag ---------------magnetite Mr -------------mar arite ~ e f -11 ------------- medte Mc ---------------- microcline Mo ---------------- molydbenite Mnz ---------------monazite Mtc --------------- montiwllite Mnt --------------- mon~morillonite Mul---------------- m d t e Ms ----------------muscovite

Ntr ---------------- natrolite Ne-----------------nepheline Nrb ---------------- norbergite Nsn ---------------nosean 01 -----------------olivine Omp ---------------om hacite Oam --------------- ort kl oamphibole Or -----------------orthoclase Opx --------------- orthopyroxene Pg ----------------- paragonite Prg ---------------- pargasite Pct ---------------- pectolite Pn ----------------- pentlandite Per ---------------- periclase Prv ---------------- perovskite Phl -----------.----- phlogopite

P ---------- pigeonite PP-II---- -------------- pla 'oclase Prh ---------------- p r e L t e Pen ---------------- protoenstatite Pmp --------------- pumpellyite Py -- --- -- --- -- - - - - - pyrite Prf -- -- --- -- --- -- - - PyrOpe Pr ---------------- pyro hyllite ! Po ----------------- pyrr otite Qtz ----------------quartz Rbk --------------- r~ebeckite Rds ---------------- rhodochrosite Rdn --------------- rhodonite Rt ----------------- rutile Sa ----------------- sanidine Spr ---------------- sapphirine

$ I--------------- scapolite Sr --------------- schorl

El-:--- ------------ serpentine ---------------siderite

Sil-----------------sillimanite Sdl ---------------- sodalite Sps ---------------- spessartine Sp ----------------- sphalerite Spl ----------------spinel Spd ---------------- spodumene St ----------------- staurolite Stb ---------------- stilbite Stp ---------------- stilpnomelane Str ---------------- strontianite Tlc ----------------talc

Tms --------------- thomsonite Ttn ---------------- titanite Toz ---------------- top= Tur ----------------tourmaline Tr ----------------- tremolite Trd ---------------- trid p Tro ---------------- tro te Ts ----------------- tschermakite Usp --------------- ulvospinel Vrm ---------------vermiculite Ves ---------------- vesuvianite Wth --------------- witherite Wo ---------------- wollastonite Wus --------------- wiistite Zrn ----------------zircon Zo ----------------- zoisite

(synonymous with "proportion") may be used in such ROCKS phrases as "a small percentage" when proportion is meant. When proportion is not meant, an expression The names of rocks are never abbreviated in nar- such as "a small part" should be used. "Percentage" rative text, but abbreviations may be appropriate on may be used with numerals in a phrase such as certain maps or tables; uniformity in such usage is "5 percentage points." desirable. Unusual abbreviations must be defined to


avoid misunderstandings. Common abbreviations are given on page 55.

Temperature is expressed in figures. Following the practice of the American Society for Testing and Materials "Standard for Metric Practice," STA recommends no space before or after the degree sign (lOO°C, 212°F).

Terms of direction are spelled out in text: "Kanosh is 58 km northwest of Koosharem; both are north of Kanab." In expressions of dip and strike, the terms of direction are abbreviated, and the degree mark is set without space against the figures:

A dip of 10" SE. (or 10" S. 35" E.) The strike is N. 55" E. (or N. 45"-70" E.: N. 55"30125" E. but "the dip is southeast."

Abbreviated terms of direction are followed by a period:

N., S., NW., SE., NNW., ESE.

The following abbreviations are commonly used in parenthetical phrases, brackets, footnotes, sidenotes, synonymies, tables, and leaderwork:

abstract@), abs. annual, ann. appendix, app. approximate(ly), approx. article(s), art., arts. association, assoc. biologic(al), biol. bulletin, bull. chapter, chap. chemical, chem. communication(s), commun. edition, editor(s), ed., eds. figure(s), fig., figs. formation(s), fm., fms. geographic(al), geog. geologic(al), geol. geophysical, geophys. hydrographic, hydrog.

hydrologic(al), hydrol. illustration(s), illus. investigation(s), inv. locality, loc. miscellaneous, misc. Mount, Mt. page(s), P. part@), pt., pts. plate@), pl., pls. publication(s), pub., pubs. report@), rept., repts. science(s), sci. section(s), sec., secs. series, ser. stratigraphiHal), strat. topographic(al), topog. volume, v. ~0010gic(al), 2001.

SCIENTIFIC A N D ENGINEERING TERMS Table 4 lists abbreviations, signs, and symbols for

scientific and engineering terms likely to be used in Survey reports. Cite meanings in text or appendix. The exact form and style of some symbols may vary with different printers.

Table 4. Abbreviations, signs, and symbols for scientific and engineering terms [Adapted from lists in STA5 and STAG. For further treatment of abbreviations, see U.S. GPO Style Manual, 1984, chap. 9. For abbreviations on ma s, see p. 55; for minerals and normative minerals, see p. 183; for chemical elements, see p. 1061

absolute ............................................................. abs absolute value .................................................... I I absorbance ............................................................ A absorptivity ........................................................... a absorptivity, molar ................................................. E

acceleration, angular ........................................ a acceleration, linear ................................................. a acre-foot (feet) ................................................ acre-ft activity, chemical (absolute) .................................... A activity, chemical (relative) ..................................... a activity coefficient .................................................. Y a n i s ................................................................ aff. alternating current ............................. ac or * or * alternating-current (unit modifier) .......................... a-c altitude ............................................................... alt ampere ................................................................. A analytical variability .............................................. 5, angle ................................................................... L angle between ...................................................... A

angle between a. and bo in the unit cell ................. y angle between a. and co in the unit cell ................. P

................. angle between bo and co in the unit cell a angle between the two optic axes of a biaxial

............................................................ mineral 2V angstrom .............................................................. A angular frequency ................................................. w angular velocity .................................................... w anhydrous ....................................................... anhyd antilogarithm ................................................. antilog approaches ........................................................... +

...................................... approximate (tion of) approx approximately (nearly) equal to Z .............................. aqueous ............................................................... aq

...................................................... are (land area) a ............................................................. area A or S

............................... astronomical unit (in English) au asymptotically equal to = ........................................

........................................................ atmosphere atm ............................................... atomic mass ma or m

Scientific and engineering terms 109

Table 4. Abbreviations, signs, and symbols for scientific Table 4. Abbreviations, signs, and symbols for scientific and engineering terms-Continued and engineering terms-Continued

atomic mass of species X ...................... m (X) or m, atomic number ....................................... a t , no or Z atomic number of species X ................... Z (X) or Z, atomic weight ....................................... at wt or M atomic weight of species X .................. M (X) or M, automatic data processing .................................. ADP average .............................................................. avg average (indicated by bar or vinculum over

symbol or by angular parentheses) ............ - or ( ) Avogadro's number ..................................... N or NA avoirdupois ....................................................... avdp azimuth ........................................................ az or a barn (area) ............................................................ b barometer .......................................................... bar. barrel ................................................................ bbl barrel per day .................................................. bbVd base of natural logarithms ...................................... e baud ................................................................... Bd BaumC (used with degree symbol) ........................ "BC becquerel ............................................................. Bq before present (dates before 1950, in thousands

of years) ....................................................... B.P. bench mark (in illustrations) ................................ BM bench mark (in text) ........................................ B.M. Bernoulli number .................................................. B Bessel function (first kind, zero order) ............... Jdx) Bessel function, hyperbolic (first kind,

zero order) .................................................... Zo(x) bias ...................................................................... 6 billion gallons per day ...................................... GgaVd billion years ...................................................... b.y. binary coded decimal ........................................ BCD biochemical oxygen demand ............................... BOD bit, byte ............................................................... b Bohr magneton ................................................... PB boiling point ........................................................ b~

................................................ Boltzmann constant k ................................................ Boltzmann function H

............................... bottom-withdrawal tube BW-tube ............................................................... braces { }

brackets ............................................................ [ 1 Bragg angle, glancing angle (20 is twice the

glancing angle in X-ray diffraction) ...................... 0 .............................................. breadth (width) b or B

..................................... Brine11 hardness number Bhn ........................................... British thermal unit Btu

................................................................. bushel b~ ..................................................................... byte B

calculated .......................................................... calorie .............................................................. cal candela ................................................................ cd

....................................................... candela-hour c'h

capacitance ........................................................... C carat .................................................................... kt Cartesian coordinates ........................................ X,Y,Z cathode ray ........................................................ CR cathode-ray tube ........................................ CRT Celsius (used with degree symbol) ........................ "C centimeter ........................................................... cm centimeter-gram-second (system) ......................... CGS centimeter-gram-second (unit) ............................... cgs central processing unit ...................................... CPU chemical oxygen demand ................................... COD

................................................. chemical potential P

chi-square statistic ................................................. xZ circa (about) ........................................................ ca. circle ................................................................... 0

.................................................... circular (shape) cir citrate-extractable heavy metal ......................... cxHM coefficient .......................................................... coef

...................................... cold-extractable copper cxCu collection(s) (abbreviation used only with

................................................... numbers) colln(s).

....................................................... cologarithm colog ....................................................... compressibility K

concentrate ........................................................ conc .................................................... concentrated concd ........................................... concentration concn or c

.......................................................... conductance G conductivity ........................................................... Y

................................... confer (to be compared to) cf. confidence limit, lower, for the population

mean ............................................................... PL

confidence limit, upper, for the population ............................................................... mean P u

constant .......................................................... const constant as defined in text .................................... K continued (abbreviation used only in some

tables) ........................................................... con. Coordinated Universal Time ............................... UTC corner ............................................................... cor. correlation coefficient ....................................... p or r cosecant ............................................................. csc cosecant, hyperbolic ........................................... csch cosine ................................................................ cos

............................................... cosine, hyperbolic cosh ........................................................... cotangent cot

.......................................... cotangent, hyperbolic coth ................................................................ coulomb C

............................................ counts per minute c/min ............................................................... critical crit

.......... Cross, Iddings, Pirsson, and Washington CIPW ............................ cross section of atoms and nuclei u

...................................... crystallographic axes a, b, c cubic centimeter ........................................ Cm3

110 Scientific and engineering terms


cumulative frequency ........................................... c. f. curie ................................................................... Ci cutting point in a hypothesis test .......................... R cycle (radio) .......................................................... c cycles per minute ........................................ clmin cycles per second ................................................. d s cylinder .............................................................. cyl darcy, darcies ....................................................... D day ....................................................................... d debye unit ........................................................... D decay constant ....................................................... A decay constant based on alpha emission ................. Aa decay constant based on negative beta emission ... Ap- decay constant based on orbital electron

capture .................................................. A, or XEC decay constant based on positron emission ........... kg+ decay constant based on spontaneous fission ......... ISF decibel ................................................................ dB degree .................................................................. degree Celsius ..................................................... OC degree Fahrenheit ................................................ OF degree Rankine ................................................... OR degree reamur ..................................................... OR

............................................. degrees of freedom d.f. delta (finite change, incremental variations,

difference) .................................................. A or 6 density (mass) ....................................................... P density (relative) .................................................... d depth .................................................................... h deuterium ................................................... D or 2H deutron ................................................................. d diameter ........................................ diam, D, or d dielectric constant (permittivity) .............................. E dielectric flux ....................................................... O differential, partial ................................................. a differential thermoanalysis .................................... dta differential, total ........................................ d or d dilute .................................................................. dil direct current ........................................ dc or -*

................................ direction of extraordinary ray E direction of flow .................................................. +

....................................... direction of ordinary ray 0 discharge; total water discharge; rate of discharge;

recharge ............................................................ Q ................................ disintegrations per minute dlmin ..................................... disintegrations per second dls

....................................... disk operating system DOS .............................................. dissociation constant K

dissociation constant, negative logarithm of; -log K ............................................................ PK

................................................. dissolved oxygen DO ................................................... dissolved solids DS

............................................................. distilled dist

ditto (the same) .................................................. do. divided by ............................................................ + dozen ................................................................. doz dram ................................................................... dr dropping mercury electrode ................................ dme dry basis ........................................................... DB dyne ................................................................. dyn efficiency ............................................................. eff electric current ...................................................... I electric-current density ....................................... J , j electric-field strength ............................................. E electric potential ................................................... V electromagnetic unit ........................................ emu electromotive force .................................... emf or E' electron ......................................................... e or e electron mass ...................................................... me electron-spin resonance ........................................ esr electronvolt .......................................................... eV

................................................... electrostatic flux O

................................................. electrostatic unit esu elementary charge .................................................. e

........................................................... elevation elev ...................................... emendatio (emended) emend.

........................................................... end point EP ................................................................. energy E

energy (kinetic) ................................................... Ek

................................................. energy (potential) E, enthalpy ............................................................... H entropy ................................................................. S entropy (standard state of) .................................... So

................................................... ephemeris time ET equal to - - ...............................................................

nearly equal to .................................................. r not equal to ...................................................... Z

...................................................... equation(s) eq (s) .............................................. equilibrium constant K

....................................................... equivalent equiv. equivalent conductivity ........................................ A

.............................................. equivalent uranium eU ...................................... equivalent weight equiv. wt.

...................................................... error function erf ............................ error function (complement to) erfc

....................................................... Euler number E ex grupo ........................................................ ex gr. exchange ............................................................. #

...................... exchangeable-potassium-percentage EPP .......................... exchangeable-sodium-percentage ESP

........................................ excited hydrogen atom H* ................................................ exponential of exp, e

.................................................... factorial product ! ................... Fahrenheit (used with degree symbol) OF

.................................................................... farad F ............................ Faraday's constant (the faraday) F

Scientific and engineering terms 11 1


foot, feet ............................................................. ft footcandle ............................................................. fc footlambert .......................................................... f~ foot (feet) per second cubed ................................ ft/s3 foot-pound ......................................................... R-lb foot-pound-second (system) ................................. FPS force .................................................................... F force (moment of) ................................................. M formality ............................................................... f freezing point ....................................................... fP frequency ....................................................... f or v frequency (spectroscopy) ........................................ v friction, coefficient of ..................................... P o r f Froude number ..................................................... F F-statistic for equality of variances ........................ F fugacity ................................................................. f function of x .................................................... f (x) fusion point ........................................................ fnp gallon ................................................................. gal gallons per minute ........................................ gaVmin gamma function ..................................................... r gas, as in H a (g) ............................................... (g) gas constant ......................................................... R gas liquid partition chromatography ..................... glpc gauss ................................................................... G Geiger-Miiller (unit modifier) ............................... G-M Gibbs free energy, Gibbs function .......................... G Gibbs free energy (standard state) ........................ Go gradient ............................................................... V

................................................................... grain gr gram ..................................................................... g gravitational acceleration, acceleration of free fall,

local acceleration due to gravity .......................... g gravitational constant ........................................ G gray (unit of measure for absorbed dose) .............. GY

......................................................... greater than > much greater than ....................................... >> not greater than ............................................. >

.............................. greater than or equal to h or r ................ Greenwich mean astronomical time G.m.a. t.

...................................... Greenwich mean time G.m.t. gross .................................................................. gr

................................................ gross weight gr. wt. .............................................................. half-life TM

half-life reduced ................................................ fTv2 ............................................................ havenine hav

........................................................... head, total H heat capacity ........................................................ C

........................ heat capacity at constant pressure Cp .......................... heat capacity at constant volume Cv

................................................................ hectare ha ................................................................... height h

........................................... Helmholtz free energy A

henry, henries ...................................................... H hertz ................................................................... HZ high-pressure (unit modifier) ................................ h-P high-pressure metal vapor .............................. HPMV horsepower .......................................................... hp hour ..................................................................... h

.......... hydrogen-ion concentration, negative log,, of PH hyperbolic functions, inverse, prefix to be added to

abbreviation (for example, arcosh) ....................... ar hypothesis (alternative) ......................................... HI

.................................................. hypothesis (null) Ho - - ....................................................... identical with -

not identical with ........................................... Z imaginary square root of -1 ............................ i or j inch (period may be used if abbreviation might

be confused with the preposition "in") ................. in inch-pound ........................................................ in-lb indeterminate ................................................... indet. index of refraction ................................................. n indices of refraction for biaxial

crystals ...................... n,, %, and n, or a,, p, and y indices of refraction for uniaxial

crystals ................................. no and n~ or o and E ............................................... inductance (mutual) M

inductance (self) .................................................... L infinity ................................................................. CX,

infrared ................................................................ ir ..................................................... inside diameter id

integral ................................................................. I integral, closed (circuital or contour) ....................... 4 intensity of X-rays reflected from crystallographic

planes ................................................................ I intermediate-pressure (unit modifier) ...................... i-p intersection or logical product ................................ f l

ionization constant ........................................ K or Ki irrigation-water classification: C denotes conductivity

(electrical); S denotes sodium-adsorption ratio (SAR); numbers denote respective numerical

............................................. quality classes C2-5'3 ......................................... Jackson turbidity unit J tu

joule ..................................................................... J .................................................. joule per kelvin J/K

....................................... Joule-Thomson coefficient P ............................ kelvin (degree symbol not used) K

................................................................ ;kilobyte K ................................................................ kilohm kfl

..................................................... kilowatthour kwh ............................................................... K-meson K

..................................................................... knot kn ................................................................ lmbert L

langley ................................................................. ly ............................................... Laplacian operator v2

......... latitude (abbreviation used only with figures) lat



length ................................................................... 1 less than .............................................................. <

much less than ........................................ << not less than .................................................. 4

less than or equal to ................................. $ or I limit of f (x) .............................................. lim f (4 linear alkylsulfonate ........................................ LAS liquefied petroleum gas ..................................... LPG liquid .................................................................. lirl liquid oxygen ...................................................... lox liter ..................................................................... L locality, localities (abbreviation used only with

numbers) .................................................... loc (s). logarithm (common) ............................................. log logarithm (natural) ..................................... log, or In logical product or intersection ................................ n logical sum or union ........................................ U longitude (abbreviation used only with figures; omit

period when "long" is used with "lat"; use period if abbreviation may be confused with the adjective "long") .......................................................... long

longitudinal velocity; P-wave velocity ..................... up low frequency ..................................................... LF low-pressure (unit modifier) .................................. 1-P

................................................................. lumen lm ........................................................ luminous flux

...................................................................... lux lx ........................ magnetic-field strength or intensity H

magnetic flux ....................................................... @ ................................................ magnetic induction B

.............. Manning's roughness (resistance) coefficient n .................................................................... mass m

mean sea level ................................................. m. s.1. mass number ........................................................ A mass number of species X .................... A (X) or A, matrix; for example 11 aij )I or (aij) or

A ............................................... 11 ] l o r ( or^ ............................... matrix, cofactor of element $Aij

matrix, conjugate ................................................. A' ............... matrix, determinant of; for example laijl I I

matrix, identity ..................................................... I matrix, inverse ................................................... A-'

................................................. matrix, transpose .......................................................... maximum max

............................................................. maxwell MX .......................................... mean (statistical) p or m

mean life .............................................................. ............................. mean of a linear combination q Pq

.......................... mean of the lognormal distribution a ............... mean of the negative binomial distribution 0

mean of sample means ........................................ C"z" ............... mean of the variance of sample means PSZ

mean sea level ........................................ m. s .I. mean square error ......................................... M.S.E. megabyte ........................................................... Mb megohm ............................................................ M a melting point ...................................................... mP member of (used with a set and its elements) ......... r meta (in organic compounds) .................................. m meter ................................................................... m metric ton ............................................................. t microGal ............................................................. CLG micron ................................................................. P mile .................................................................... mi miles per hour ...................................... milh or mph Miller indices ...................................................... hkl millimeter of mercury .................................... mmHg million .................................................................. M million gallons per day ................................... Mgalld million years .................................................... m.y. minimum ........................................................... min minus ................................................................... -

- minus or plus ....................................................... + minute .............................................................. min minute; prime; foot ................................................ ' mixture melting point ....................................... mmp Modified Mercalli ........................................ MM molality, mold (concentration) ................................ m

....................... molar concentration of substance B CB molar mass of substance B .................................. MB molarity, molar (concentration) ............................... M mole .................................................................. mol molecular concentration ........................................ C

........................................... molecular weight mol wt month ................................................................ mo

........................................................... motorship MS . ................................................. multiplied by x or

multiplying factor for the geometric mean of lognormally distributed observations ..................................... #,

multiplying factor for the variance of lognormally distributed observations ..................................... 4n

......................................... multispectral scanner MSS muon ................................................................... CL

.................... nabla; del; differential vector operator V natural variability ................................................. 5,

...................................................... nautical mile nrni ................................................................ neutrino V

................................................................. neutron n ................................................... new genus n. gen. ................................................. new series new ser. .................................................... new species n. Sp. ................................................... new variety n. var.

................................................................. newton N ................................................... newton meter N -m

Newtonian gravitational constant ............................ G

Scientific and engineering terms


no data ............................................................. n.d. no record, not reported ..................................... n.r. nomen nudum ........................................... nom. nud. normality, normal (concentration) ............................ N not available; not applicable ................................ NA. not determined .................................................. n. d. nucleon number .................................................... A number of observations in a population .................. N number of observations (sample size) ....................... n number of samples ................................................. k observation ........................................................... w observed frequency of observations ........................ 0 oersted ................................................................ 0 e ohm ..................................................................... a ohm centimeter ................................................ &cm ohm meter ........................................................ a.rn optical directions in a crystal; also rays of light in these

directions and pleochroic colors in these directions ................................................ x, y, z

ortho (in organic compounds) .................................. o ounce ................................................................... oz outside diameter .................................................. od oven-dry basis .................................................. ODB oxidation-reduction potential ................................. Eh para (in organic compounds) ................................... P parsec ................................................................. PC part(s) ............................................................. pt(s).

.............................................. part($ per billion P P ~

.............................................. part(s) per million PPm part(s) per thousand ................................. ppt or "1, partial pressure of oxygen or carbon

...................... dioxide Po2, Pco2, or P (02), P(C02) ............................................. particle-size diameter 4

.................................................. partition function Z ................................................................. pascal Pa

..................................................... pascal second Pa-s peck ................................................................... ~k

.............................. percentage risk of type I error a ............................. percentage risk of type I1 error P

.................................................................. period T .................................................................. phase ph ................................................................. phenyl Ph

phot .................................................................... ~h photon .................................................................. r pint ..................................................................... pt pi (mathematical constant) ..................................... IT

pion .................................................................. ..................................................... Planck constant h

plus ..................................................................... + plus or minus ....................................................... * poise ..................................................................... P Poisson ratio ............................................... v or P pooled sample variance ......................................... sP"

population coefficient of variation and of skewness ..... y population mean .................................................... P population standard deviation .................................. u population variance ........................................ 02 posterior distribution of a parameter 8 .............. Dl(0) potassium-adsorption ratio .................................. PAR potential difference ........................................ V or U pound (mass) ........................................................ lb pound avoirdupois ......................................... lb avdp pound-force .......................................................... lbf pound-force per square inch ............................. lbf/in2 power .................................................................. P precipitate ................................................. P P ~ or J preparation variability ........................................... t* pressure ....................................................... P or p primary wave ............................................... P-wave prior distribution of a parameter 8 .................. Do (8) probability of the event A ................................ P(A) product of a series ................................................ Il . . proportion ............................................................. proportion of successes in a binomial population ....... 8 protium ............................................................... 'H proton ................................................................... P quantity of electric charge or electricity; quantity of heat;

................................................ quantity of light Q quart ................................................................... qt

..................................................................... rad rd radian ................................................................ rad radiance ............................................................... B radiant ernissivity .................................................. J radiant energy ...................................................... Q radiant energy density ........................................ u radiant exposure ................................................... H radiant flux .......................................................... Q, radiant intensity .................................................... I radical ................................................................. d

.............................. radio detection and ranging radar ................................................... radio frequency R F

......................................................... radius r or R .............. random fluctuation of "experimental error" e

..................................... random access memory RAM Range($ (legal land division) ............................. R(s).

........................ rankine (used with degree symbol) OR ratio; is to (when solidus is used, the word "ratio" should

.................... follow; for example, CuINi ratio) : or .............................................................. X

............................................ read-only memory ROM rbaumur (used with degree symbol) ...................... OR refractive index at 20°C, sodium (D)

20 ................................................................ line no ............................. relative cumulative *equency r.c. f.

repeating decimal; bar covers part that is to be ......................................................... repeated 1.



............................................................. ................................................................. resistance R square sq .............................................................. resistivity p square centimeter .............................................. cm2 ......................................................... .......................................... return beam vidicon RBV square root

........................................ ............................................................. reversible reaction % standard std ~ ~ --

revolutions per minute .......................... rlmin or rpm standard deviation .................................................. u revolutions per second ............................... "S Or vs standard error of laboratory

number .................................................. R means ............................................................... sx roentgen (used with degree symbol) ...................... OR standard mean ocean water ............................ SMOW roentgen equivalent, man or mammal .................. rem standard state ..................................................... roentgen equivalent, physical ............................... rep standard state Gibbs free energy .......................... G" root .................................................................... V standard temperature ..................... sTP root mean square ........................................ rms standardized normal distribution ........................ s.n.d. rubidium acid phthalate ..................................... RAP station(s) (abbreviation used only with R~dberg constant ........................................ Or RY numbers) ..................................................... sta(s). Rydberg constant for infinite mass ........................ R, ........................................... steradian (solid angle) sr

(parts per .................................. "'m stokes ................................................................. St sample coefficient of variation ................................ C nod or linear .......................................... sample mean ........................................................ strain, shear .......................................................... Y

....................................................... ....................................... sample standard deviation s stress, normal a sample variance ................................................... 92 stress, shear ......................................................... 7

sampling variability ............................................... 5, subgenus subgen. ...................................................... saturated calomel electrode .................................. sce subset of; is contained in ...................................... c secant ................................................................ sec subspecies ...................................................... subsp. secant, hyperbolic ........................................ sech "Suggestions to Authors" ................................... STA second (time) ......................................................... s sum 8 ..................................................................... second; double prime; inch ...................................... " sum of squares .................................................... SS second-foot ......................................................... s.ft sum of squares of the replication totals ................ 7'2 secondary wave ........................................ S-wave sum of squares of the treatment totals ................. T,2 section(s) (subdivision of Township and Range) ...see (s). sum total of observations in a sample .................... T sensu lato .......................................................... s.1. surface tension .............................................. or o sensu strict0 ....................................................... S.S. tangent .............................................................. tan shear velocity; S-wave velocity .............................. v, tangent, hyperbolic ........................................... tanh siemens ................................................................. S temperature .................................. ; ................... temp sine .................................................................... sin temperature, in degrees Celsius .............................. t sine, hyperbolic ................................................. sinh temperature, in kelvins; absolute temperature; sine of the amplitude (an elliptic function) ............. sn thermodynamic temperature ................................ T skewness of frequency distribution ........................ sk tesla .................................................................... T sodium, line in spectrum of ................................... D theoretical frequency of observations ...................... T sodium-adsorption ratio ...................................... SAR thermogravimetric analysis ................................... tfTa solid, as in AgCl(s) ........................................ (s) thickness ........................................................ t or d solid angle ........................................................... o thin-layer chromatography ..................................... tlc

............................................................... solidus (also called virgule, slash) ............................. 1 thousand k .................................................................... soluble ................................................................ sol thus sic ...................................................................... ............................................................. solution soh time t

................................................ ........................... sound navigation and ranging sonar ton, metric (tonne) t spacing of Bragg planes in a crystal ....................... d total (grand) of observations squared ..................... G2

.................. species (singular) ................................................ sp. Townships(s) (legal land division) T., Tps. ................................................................... (plural) ........................................................ Spp. trace tr.

........................................ ................................................ specific gravity sp gr trace of a matrix (math) t r .......................................... .................................................... specific heat sp ht transformed observation u

........................................................ ............................................. specific heat capacity c transmittance T ................................................................ ............................................... specific volume Sp V O ~ triangle A

Scientific and engineering terms 115

Table 4. Abbreviations, signs, and symbols for scientific and engineering terms-Continued

trigonometric functions, inverse circular, prefix to be added to abbreviation (for example, arccos) ............................................................ arc

tritium ........................................................ T or 3H tritium unit ........................................................ TU triton .................................................................... t true mean ......................................................... t.m. ultraviolet ............................................................ uv undetermined .................................................. undet. unified atomic mass unit ........................................ u union or logical sum ........................................ u unit-cell edges ..................................... 0, bo, and co United States (abbreviation used as

adjective only) ........................................ U.S. United States Geological Survey ...................... USGS U.S. Government Printing Office ...................... GPO United States National Museum (abbreviation used

.............. before locality or collection number USNM universal time .................................................... u.t.

.............................. Universal Time, Coordinated UTC ......................... Universal Transverse Mercator UTM

.............................................................. vacuum vac vapor pressure .................................................... vp variance, statistic to estimate the variance of

................... lognormally distributed observations V2 ........................................... variance of quantity q

0: .......................... variance of lognormal distribution p2 ................ variance of negative binomial distribution k

................................................... variation operator 6 ............................................... variations; varies as a

variety .............................................................. var. velocity ......................................................... v or u

Table 4. Abbreviations, signs, and symbols for scientific and engineering terms-Continued

velocity of light (in vacuo) ..................................... c velocity, P-wave .................................................. VP

velocity, S-wave ................................................... vs versed sine ....................................................... vers versus (standard usage) ....................................... vs. vertical angle elevation bench mark ................ VABM vinculum (above letter; for example, F) .................. - Viscosity, dynamic .................................................. q viscosity, kinematic ................................................ v volt ..................................................................... V voltampere ......................................................... VA volume, chemical and physical use ......................... V volume strain, bulk strain ...................................... 0 watt ................................................................... W watthour ............................................................ Wh wavelength ............................................................ A wavenumber .................................................. u or v weber ................................................................ Wb weight ................................................................ wt

.............................................. weight per volume wlv

............................................. weight per weight wlw yard ................................................................... yd year .................................................................... yr

.................................................................. yields +

................................. Young's modulus of elasticity E

Prefixes and abbreviations for multiples and submultiples, SI units exa (10'8) ............................................................. E

............................................................ peta (lo") P tera (10'2) ............................................................ T giga (104 ............................................................. G mega (lo6) ............................................................ M kilo (lo3) ............................................................... k hecto (lo2) ............................................................. h deka (10) ............................................................ da

............................................................. deci (lo4) d centi (10-2) ............................................................ c milli (103> ............................................................ m

.......................................................... micro (1C6) P ............................................................ nano ( 1 0 9 n

pic0 (10-9 ............................................................ P .......................................................... femto (10-16) f

............................................................ atto (10~8) a


abbreviations, signs, and symbols

Documents